'Brum' and 'Wouster'

[Aethelwulf]

Does anyone know if there are any ripper letters that either directly or indirectly reference Farmer or Mylett?

[Aethelwulf]

It has been a while since I posted on these letters but spotted something else that may be of interest. As noted previously in the OP, Brum and Wouster have some curiuos similarities (spotted 3 girls, will commit 15 murders) that suggest they could have been written by the same person IMO. The Wouster letter also uses what seems to me a slightly curious way of referring to committing a murder as 'settle'/. Here is the text from Wouster:

• I shall kill 15 at Brum call and settle 3 I have spotted at Wouster

Brum and wouster in the west mids are places of relevance for Bury. Curiously, the spring heel jack letter from a man sleeping in Bow cemetery (a stone's throw from Bury's Spanby road address) uses the following phrase in the context of being annoyed at the amount of police in the area and suggesting he will kill some policemen:

• I was in the crowd at Berners Street watching the blue boys wash the blood marks away sorry to give you so much trouble but what I have sworne to do I will at the cost of my own life at nights I have been sleeping in Bow cemetery one thing I have to tell you know is the policemen who has found the women it is those I mean settleing[sic] as they will not g[et] the chance of giving evidence against me

Perhaps nothing, perhaps 'settle' was a common way of referring to murder back then. Strikes me as a bit of an odd phrase to use and crops up in letters connected to places of significane for Bury.

There are also some curious similarities with Bury's handwriting in the Bow letter.

[The Rookie Detective]

Amazing thread and full of brilliant viewpoints.


For me, it all feels very theatrical.


Jeckyl and Hyde was on at the theatre at the time and for me the idea that the letters are written by the same hand, but look completely different, is something a writer or actor would pen if they were in character.


Bachert was a complete fantasist and it wouldn't surprise me if he was responsible for writing the letters.

You have suspects like Bury, Jacob Levy, Francis Thompson... They all are extremely suspicious...but the one thing that makes Bachert draw focus is that he was actively connected to the case do to his obsession with the case.

It wouldn't surprise me if Bachert considered himself as a performer. But how much did he live out his fantasy?

The Birmingham/West Midlands link is particularly interesting because let's not forget....

Eddowes was born in Wolverhampton

As for the Hull reference, that is peculiar.

The only person linked to Hull that I am aware of is the wife of PC Watkins who found Eddowes, namely Augusta, who was a native of Hull.

Did Eddowes know the killer?

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